5-minute tutorial
Migrate SAP HANA to DuckDB in 60 Seconds
Learn how to copy your SAP HANA data to DuckDB with a single command using ingestr - no code required.
What you'll learn
Prerequisites
- Python 3.8 or higher installed
- SAP HANA instance running
- User with appropriate authorizations
- Network access to HANA port
- Client software compatibility
- DuckDB installed locally or database file accessible
- Write permissions for database file location
- Sufficient memory for in-memory operations
- Compatible file format version
Step 1: Install ingestr
Install ingestr in seconds using pip. Choose the method that works best for you:
Recommended: Using uv (fastest)
# Install uv first if you haven't already
pip install uv
# Run ingestr using uvx
uvx ingestr
Alternative: Global installation
# Install globally using uv
uv pip install --system ingestr
# Or using standard pip
pip install ingestr
Verify installation: Run ingestr --version
to confirm it's installed correctly.
Step 2: Your First Migration
Let's copy a table from SAP HANA to DuckDB. This example shows a complete, working command you can adapt to your needs.
Set up your connections
SAP HANA connection format:
saphana://username:password@host:port
Parameters:
- • username: HANA user
- • password: User password
- • host: HANA server hostname
- • port: Instance port (30015 for MDC)
- • database: Tenant database name
DuckDB connection format:
duckdb:///path/to/database.duckdb
Parameters:
- • path: Path to database file (use :memory: for in-memory)
- • read_only: Optional flag for read-only access
- • threads: Number of threads to use
BigQuery Setup Required
Before running the command:
- Create a service account in Google Cloud Console
- Grant it BigQuery Data Editor and Job User roles
- Download the JSON key file
- Use the path to this file in your connection string
Run your first copy
Copy the entire users table from SAP HANA to DuckDB:
ingestr ingest \
--source-uri 'saphana://SYSTEM:MyPassword@hana-server:30015' \
--source-table 'SALES_DATA' \
--dest-uri 'duckdb:///home/user/analytics.duckdb' \
--dest-table 'raw.SALES_DATA'
What this does:
- • Connects to your SAP HANA database
- • Reads all data from the specified table
- • Creates the table in DuckDB if needed
- • Copies all rows to the destination
Command breakdown:
--source-uri
Your source database--source-table
Table to copy from--dest-uri
Your destination--dest-table
Where to write data
Step 3: Verify your data
After the migration completes, verify your data was copied correctly:
Check row count in DuckDB:
-- Run this in DuckDB
SELECT COUNT(*) as row_count
FROM raw.SALES_DATA;
-- Check a sample of the data
SELECT *
FROM raw.SALES_DATA
LIMIT 10;
Advanced Patterns
Once you've mastered the basics, use these patterns for production workloads.
Only copy new or updated records since the last sync. Perfect for daily updates.
ingestr ingest \
--source-uri 'saphana://SYSTEM:MyPassword@hana-server:30015' \
--source-table 'public.orders' \
--dest-uri 'duckdb:///home/user/analytics.duckdb' \
--dest-table 'raw.orders' \
--incremental-strategy merge \
--incremental-key updated_at \
--primary-key order_id
How it works: The merge strategy updates existing rows and inserts new ones based on the primary key. Only rows where updated_at
has changed will be processed.
Common Use Cases
Ready-to-use commands for typical SAP HANA to DuckDB scenarios.
Daily Customer Data Sync
Keep your analytics warehouse updated with the latest customer information every night.
# Add this to your cron job or scheduler
ingestr ingest \
--source-uri 'saphana://SYSTEM:MyPassword@hana-server:30015' \
--source-table 'public.customers' \
--dest-uri 'duckdb:///home/user/analytics.duckdb' \
--dest-table 'analytics.customers' \
--incremental-strategy merge \
--incremental-key updated_at \
--primary-key customer_id
Historical Data Migration
One-time migration of all historical records to your data warehouse.
# One-time full table copy
ingestr ingest \
--source-uri 'saphana://SYSTEM:MyPassword@hana-server:30015' \
--source-table 'public.transactions' \
--dest-uri 'duckdb:///home/user/analytics.duckdb' \
--dest-table 'warehouse.transactions_historical'
Development Environment Sync
Copy production data to your development DuckDB instance (with sensitive data excluded).
# Copy sample data to development
ingestr ingest \
--source-uri 'saphana://SYSTEM:MyPassword@hana-server:30015' \
--source-table 'public.products' \
--dest-uri 'duckdb:///home/user/analytics.duckdb' \
--dest-table 'dev.products' \
--limit 1000 # Only copy 1000 rows for testing
Troubleshooting Guide
Solutions to common issues when migrating from SAP HANA to DuckDB.
Connection refused or timeout errors
Check your connection details:
- Check HANA instance is running
- Verify port number (30015 + instance number)
- Ensure user has required privileges
- Check firewall and network settings
- Ensure database file path is accessible
- Check file permissions for read/write access
- Verify DuckDB version compatibility
- Consider memory limits for large operations
Authentication failures
Common authentication issues:
- Check HANA instance is running
- Verify port number (30015 + instance number)
- Ensure user has required privileges
- Check firewall and network settings
- Ensure database file path is accessible
- Check file permissions for read/write access
- Verify DuckDB version compatibility
- Consider memory limits for large operations
Schema or data type mismatches
Handling data type differences:
- ingestr automatically handles most type conversions
- SAP HANA: NVARCHAR for Unicode text
- SAP HANA: Spatial data types for GIS
- SAP HANA: Text analysis data types
- SAP HANA: Large object support
- DuckDB: LIST and STRUCT types for complex data
- DuckDB: Native support for nested data structures
- DuckDB: Automatic type inference from files
- DuckDB: Efficient NULL handling
Performance issues with large tables
Optimize large data transfers:
- Use incremental loading to process data in chunks
- Run migrations during off-peak hours
- Split very large tables by date ranges using interval parameters
Ready to scale your data pipeline?
You've learned how to migrate data from SAP HANA to DuckDB with ingestr. For production workloads with monitoring, scheduling, and data quality checks, explore Bruin Cloud.